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http://cbs2.com/topstories/local_story_293142716.html
George Russell Weller, 89, who drove his car through a Santa Monica farmers market in 2003, killing 10 people and injuring 63 others, was convicted Friday of 10 counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.
Weller was 86 years old at the time. He now faces up to 18 years in prison.
The six-man, six-woman jury reached the verdict Friday morning, on their ninth day of deliberations.
Weller was not in the courtroom as the verdicts were read. His attorneys said he was in poor health and could not attend. The judge agreed at the beginning of the trial that Weller would not have to attend most of the proceedings.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Johnson did not immediately set a sentencing date. He asked attorneys to come back next Friday for a hearing to schedule the sentencing.
His attorneys contended that he accidentally pressed the gas pedal when he meant to hit the brakes as he plowed through the market along Arizona Avenue near Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade.
But in her closing argument, Deputy District Attorney Ann Ambrose said failure to convict Weller of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence would be like saying the man was guilty of nothing more than making a mistake
when he drove through the market.
In his closing argument, defense attorney Mark Overland said the prosecution's case was built on questionable testimony from a select number of witnesses whose comments were tailored to fit to the prosecution's theory that
Weller was able to see, steer and stop the vehicle and could have prevented the carnage.
Of the hundreds who witnessed the event, only a few were chosen to testify, and their testimony, based on events of three years ago, was questionable, Overland said. He noted the discrepancy in the testimony of certain witnesses on the stand and in statements they made to police at the scene.
"So what do you do with all this, do you pick and choose what fits your theory or do you look at all the evidence?" he asked the jurors.
In her rebuttal, Ambrose described the defense's tactics as being designed to divert jurors' attention away from the criminal conduct of the man who stood accused of plowing through the market and pedestrians.
"He spent two hours ... talking about everyone other than the defendant," Ambrose told jurors. "He roared at you so you wouldn't look at the truth, the truth that Mr. Weller's conduct killed 10 innocent people."
And despite the defense's claim -- backed by some high-paid "so-called" defense experts -- that Weller made a pedal error sending him into a "hypervigilant brain freeze," that didn't legally absolve the man of guilt, Ambrose said.
"Just because it's an accident doesn't mean there's no crime," Ambrose said. "You can't then use your negligence as an excuse."

http://cbs2.com/topstories/local_story_293142716.html
George Russell Weller, 89, who drove his car through a Santa Monica farmers market in 2003, killing 10 people and injuring 63 others, was convicted Friday of 10 counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.
Weller was 86 years old at the time. He now faces up to 18 years in prison.
He kills 10 people and only faces a max of 18yrs in prison. WTF

The news just said that they dont think he will do one (1) day in jail due to his age.
To me that sets a dangerous precident. Does that mean young people should get the same break because they are immature and have the rest of their lives to live.

Interesting...what about the CA DMV that still issues a license to the elderly with a 4 year experation date..you would think they would only issue a 1 year license once you reach a certain age...how many times have you been behind someone old that had no clue how to drive....I guess for that matter how many times have you been behind someone at any age that had no clue...I guess they will issue a license to anyone...Now I am not trying to say that the old man is not guilty or anything..just another way to look at it...maybe the DMV can make stricter rules for issuing a license....so that these accidents do not keep happening...